Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be freaked out by my DDs imaginary friend.

90 replies

KellyElly · 26/07/2012 20:35

She's called GIRL. She only comes out at night. One night when I'd had some bad dreams my DD said 'that's because girl was in your bed mummy'. Apparently girl also stands at the bottom of my bed while we sleep (horror film style). Is this normal??? My DD is not yet 3. Her imaginary friend seems a bit scary. Maybe I've watched too many horror films lol. She used to have one called Karen who was much less freaky :)

OP posts:
froggies · 26/07/2012 22:05

My daughters imaginary friend is called Mr. Nobody Head. He seems to be responsible for many things, usually messy Hmm

HermioneE · 26/07/2012 22:12

Whatever you do OP, don't picture the girl from The Ring.

whoops Grin

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 22:19

Have a Labyrinth link (can't do the clicky one on bb) m.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&hl=en-GB&client=mv-rim&v=ViftZTfRSt8

OP posts:
HolofernesesHead · 26/07/2012 22:22

When I was little I used to sleepwalk quite a lot, and go and stand at the foot if my sister's bed. She'd wake up, freak out, get really angry with me, wake me up and I'd get all flustered....poor sister! Oh dear. Imaginary friends are not a problem, I don't think. Sisters who sleepwalk are! :)

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 22:22

Oh god the Ring. Then I would move Grin

OP posts:
Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 22:23

m.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&hl=en-GB&client=mv-rim&v=ViftZTfRSt8 maybe?

OP posts:
HumphreyCobbler · 26/07/2012 22:25

DS's friend was the little boy who lived in the mirror. His name was Alan. When DS caught a glimpse of his reflection when out and about, he would say "Oooh, hello Alan. What are YOU doing here?" in tones of great surprise.

Once he turned to me with a mournful expression and said
"I want to go home" I replied that he was at home
"No. This is Alan's home. I want to go to MY home".

Freaked out my niece who then refused to babysit Grin

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 22:29

HumphreyCobbler oh god, this is all more common than I thought. Children are quite scary lol

OP posts:
Tallalime · 26/07/2012 22:31

Yep he's definitely my new imaginary friend. Now he even has dialogue "in 9 hours and 23 minutes you'll be mine"

Abso-fucking-lutely!

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 22:37

Tallalime lol

OP posts:
Goofymum · 26/07/2012 22:45

My DD, age 6, freaked me out this evening by telling me out the blue that about a year ago she saw an owl staring at her thru my bedroom window when she was in our bed. I questioned her more and she was quite specific about the 2 eyes staring at her thru the blinds (the blinds on our window are in sections and we always leave the top high section open).

It freaked my out because at the weekend I saw a trailer for a film based on real life events about alien abductions where these people all saw an owl at their window. The trailer scared me. And then DD suddenly saying this for no reason?

DottyFlowers · 26/07/2012 22:46

When he was around 2 he would talk about his friend. The name was unusual and no way he could have heard it. He would point, laugh and watch. Kept talking about his friend. One time when he was ill and unsettled his friend came to visit and cheered him up no end. :)

They do say children under 5/6 (maybe slightly older) are generally quite open to such things.

Shullbit · 26/07/2012 22:49

Oh god, I am glad that my eldest has never had any imaginary friends reading these stories. Still got the little one though to wait and see. Eek.

WhirlyByrd · 26/07/2012 22:53

We had one for a while when DS was 2/3. He seemed to be a manifestation of DS's emotions at the time as he was going through a bit of a trouble time at nursery. Imaginary friend would get blamed for naughty things and stuff. DS was quite ambivalent about him and did sometimes get scared by him. So, one day, when he was very upset and said he didn't like his imaginary friend, I 'ordered' him to leave the house and never come back. That was the last we heard about him! It did make me shiver when DS would see his swing swaying in the breeze and go all stary and say "X is in the garden on the swing" He had a really ridiculous name, but can't share as it will out me in RL!

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 23:00

WhirlyByrd that's the weird thing about GIRL, she never gets blamed for naughtiness and my DD isn't scared at all. Talks in a very nonchalant manner about her. Maybe it's just me projecting my horror film ideas on something normal? Or maybe we are living out the Sixth Sense Grin

OP posts:
Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 23:02

It's also the name GIRL, now if she was called Sarah or Emma or something it wouldn't be so creepy lol.

OP posts:
Noqontrol · 26/07/2012 23:04

Oh goofymum, shut the blinds.

Original poster
KellyElly · 26/07/2012 23:27

Right I'm off to bed. If GIRL thinks she's sleeping with me she's got another thing coming :)

OP posts:
LaVitaBellissima · 27/07/2012 07:49

I dreamt about Davie Bowie last night Grin

onetiredmummy · 27/07/2012 08:21

It could well be that you're projecting your own fears onto something harmless, but I'm not comfortable with girl either.

Why not ask your dd a bit more about her, what she looks like, what she likes to do etc. Also ask where Karen went.

The rational part of me thinks that if your dd is happy to have girl around then all well & good. Kids have great imaginations. Other parts of me think its odd for your dd to associate your bedroom with girl especially when nightmares are concerned. I'd want to know more about girl & whether girl likes YOU.

If you find it genuinely creepy then I'd say contact your local spiritualist church & get their advice. I'd imagine you can google them although I've not had to do it myself. There are many possible explanations so try not to freak out :)

CrunchyFrog · 27/07/2012 08:29

We have Lucy.

Lucy sits on the end of DS2's bed, and she watches me. She tells DS2 that Mummy is very naughty.

She lives away in the mountains, can fly, has yellow hair and seems to know an awful lot about us.

Yes, it is freaky, because it is so bloody real to him.

whois · 27/07/2012 08:35

I've enjoyed reading this thread; mostly lovely but a little bit freaky!

Sookeh · 27/07/2012 08:42

DD has "Morgan" who is very tall and skinny with hair that changes colour Confused.

Dfg15 · 27/07/2012 09:05

DD1 had an imaginary octopus - named 'Octa' who was green with pink spots. We were in a furniture superstore, and they had signs hanging from the ceiling - one of them was swinging gently, she said quite indignantly 'Octa, come down from there'. That was the last we ever heard of Octa!

steppemum · 27/07/2012 09:14

I am truly amazed at how people have gone off on the ghost theme over an imaginary friend!

Imaginary friends are totally normal and come in all shapes and sizes. They very often are there to help child deal with something they are scared of, so I would guess that Girl has appeared because dd is afraid of bad dreams, so she blames them on Girl who is controllable because she is in her own imagination.

My dd will play games where 'the mummy and daddy have been killed and we have to look after ourself' the game is very good natured and happy, and it might just be a convenient way to get rid of the parents for an adventure or maybe she is acting out one of her fears. I am not sure. But that is how kids deal with fears, make tham part of your world and then you have control over them, they become less scarey.

We also had Baby, who had to have a seat in the car and at the table for a while. She held dds hand as we walked down the street, so she couldn't hold my hand Hmm

don't worry, it's normal

Swipe left for the next trending thread